Mindsets and the Learning Environment Research Portfolio

The Mindset Scholars Network has launched a new interdisciplinary initiative to explore how learning environments shape the mindsets students develop about learning and school. The project’s aim is to rapidly generate scientific evidence about how educators at all levels can convey messages to students that they can grow their ability, that they belong and are valued at school, and that what they are doing in school matters.

The eight project teams will conclude their analyses in the fall of 2017, and the network will release the major findings from the projects in the winter of 2017-18.

FUNDERS
The total amount of funding awarded was nearly $550,000. The Raikes Foundation provided initial funding for the project and other funders are expected to provide additional support in the coming months.

PROJECTS & TEAM MEMBERS
The network is currently funding eight projects, which include 14 different network scholars and over a dozen external collaborators. The projects span a wide range of topics, from exploring how teacher practices cultivate learning mindsets and identity safety in K-12 classrooms, to the role of new developmental course models in fostering learning mindsets in post-secondary settings.

What supports are necessary for learning mindsets to lead to positive outcomes for students in disadvantaged environments?

What makes a mindset program effective for students attending the poorest schools? How can these programs be designed to improve outcomes for students who face high levels of socioeconomic disadvantage and adversity?

How do learning mindsets develop during co-requisite courses (courses in which postsecondary students take a one-credit support course alongside foundational math, English, and writing courses—rather than a non-credit developmental course)?

What factors affect learning mindset development in co-requisite courses?

Are changes in learning mindsets associated with academic, career preparation, and employment outcomes, and are these benefits explained by learning mindsets?

Are classroom practices related to students’ perception that their teacher endorses a growth mindset? If so, which practices are most strongly related to these perceptions?

Are there differences between stigmatized and non-stigmatized students in terms of how they perceive their teachers’ mindsets? Are stigmatized students less likely to perceive that their teachers endorse a growth mindset (e.g., think that anyone can become good at math)?

DATASET:
Longitudinal study of adolescents’ social brain development (53 students)

PRIMARY RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Is it possible to extend mindset programs to target broader psychosocial and neurobiological health outcomes among adolescents?

How do cultural influences on social brain development explain how exposures to cultural norms and values shape styles of social-emotional and self-processing?

Are there practices and policies that could more effectively support the development of learning mindsets by strategically leveraging opportunities for downtime and reflection with opportunities for concrete productivity?